Allentown Tells Drbc It Opposes Stroh Wells

Allentown has alerted the Delaware River Basin Commission that it opposes any new high-volume wells that would reduce the city's water supply from Schantz Spring.

The city's opposition could block plans by the Stroh Brewery and the Lehigh County Authority to develop wells in Upper Macungie Township.

LCA filed suit last month to stop the brewery from withdrawing as an authority customer and drilling two private wells to meet its needs.

Mayor Joseph S. Daddona this week sent a letter to the commission objecting to theconstruction "of any new large volume wells, regardless of the intended users, unless it can be specifically documented that well development and pumpage controls would not reduce the supply to Schantz Spring under all climatic conditions."

The mayor noted that the spring has been a major source of water to the city since 1903. During normal conditions about 8 million gallons a day are pumped to the city, but the amount has been about 6 million gallons a day during the drought emergency.

"We therefore, in the interest of all Allentown citizens, as well as the numerous other municipalities who share our water supplies, would have to oppose any action which increases the potential or remote possibility that this spring would not be available to the city at the quality and quantity of water that it has provided over the years," Daddona wrote.

"We recently became aware that several high volume wells were developed in the ground water basin that supplies Schantz Spring and learned that Stroh Brewery Co. intends to utilize the basin water for its own industrial purposes.

"These types of large volume projects tend to reduce the available supply for present users and provide the potential for exceeding the safe yield of the aquifer, since controls on volume usage are difficult to implement and enforce on active wells."

LCA recently drilled a well north of Oldt Road, about 3,600 feet southwest of the brewery. It has applied to the basin commission for approval to use it.

Michael Barron, LCA project engineer, said, "The well tested at 1,800- gallons-per-minute capacity, but we wouldn't pump that much."

He said he doubted if the withdrawal would have a noticeable effect on the Schantz Spring supply.

Stroh plans to drill two private wells at its brewery and cease purchasing water from LCA because, it claims, LCA water rates are illegal and exorbitant. To continue buying LCA water at current rates would mean production and employment would have to be reduced, the company said.

LCA supplies the brewery with more than 1 million gallons of water a day.

Stroh has applied for permission from the basin commission to drill the two wells. If Stroh gets the commission's sanction to drill its own wells, LCA has indicated it will take further legal action to prevent the drilling.

In addition to Schantz Spring water, the city gets about 30 million gallons a day from the Little Lehigh Creek and 4.5 mgd from Crystal Spring.